This application claims priority to Australia Patent Application No. PR4934, filed May 11, 2001, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference.
This invention relates to a gaming machine. More particularly, the invention relates to a gaming machine and to an improvement to a game played on such a gaming machine.
Players who regularly play gaming machines quickly tire of particular games and therefore it is necessary for manufacturers of these machines to develop innovative game features which add interest to the games. In so doing, it is hoped to keep players amused and therefore willing to continue playing the game as well as to attract new players.
Also, with the growth that has occurred in the gaming machine market, there is intense competition between manufacturers to supply various existing and new venues. When selecting a supplier of gaming machines, the operator of a venue will often pay close attention to the popularity of various games with their patrons. Therefore, gaming machine manufacturers are keen to devise games which are popular with the players as a mechanism for improving sales, retaining customers and attracting new customers.
According to the invention, there is provided a gaming machine having a display means and a game control means arranged to control images displayed on the display means, the game control means being operable to play a game of bingo, the gaming machine being characterised in that the display means displays a plurality of bingo cards simultaneously, at least one of said bingo cards being selected by a person playing the game in order for that person to play the game of bingo.
The game control means may cause a representation of a bingo player to be displayed in association with each one of the bingo cards, the bingo players preferably being represented as animations on the display means.
The person playing the game (referred to below as xe2x80x9cthe game playerxe2x80x9d) may select at least one bingo player to represent the game player in the bingo game. If desired, the game player may choose more than one bingo card by choosing more than one bingo player. The number of bingo players chosen may be governed by the number of credits wagered, e.g. for one credit, one bingo player may be chosen, for two credits, two bingo players may be chosen, etc.
Preferably, all the bingo cards in the bingo game are displayed simultaneously and may be viewed by the game player. The game control means may generate a bingo card for each bingo player, the bingo cards having the indicia marked on them. The indicia on each bingo card may be arranged in a matrix. The playing of the bingo game may require the same pattern of indicia always to be completed to constitute a bingo game-winning result. In other words, the game player may not have any option as to which pattern of indicia is to be completed. In this embodiment, the pattern of indicia to be completed may be that all the indicia on the card need to be marked off. Instead, in another embodiment, as an initial step in the playing of the game, the game player may be required to select a predetermined pattern of indicia to apply to the bingo cards, the pattern of indicia on all the displayed bingo cards then being the same. It is to be noted that the pattern of indicia available to be selected may include one where all the indicia on the card are required to be marked off.
Prior to displaying the indicia, the game control means may select the prize and cause a representation of the prize to be displayed on the display means together with a number of credits.
The bingo player selected by the game player to represent the game player may be distinctively highlighted on the display means to indicate its role as representing the game player. More particularly, the bingo card of the bingo player representing the game player may be highlighted, for example, by being surrounded by an animation of a ring of flashing lights.
A prize may be awarded if the pattern of indicia on the game player""s card is completed, i.e. all the indicia in the pattern have been marked off, before the completion of the same pattern of indicia on any of the other, non-selected cards. Instead, a prize may be awarded if the pattern of indicia on the game player""s card or, possibly, any bingo player""s card, is completed within a predetermined number of bingo indicia draws.
Further, a consolation prize may be awarded to the game player if another bingo player""s pattern of indicia is completed before any indicia have been marked off on the game player""s card. The relevant prize or consolation prize may be a number of credits or another feature.
Preferably, an animated bingo game caller is displayed on the display means. During the bingo game, the game caller may be displayed in an animated form selecting bingo indicia.
An indicia board may also be displayed on the display means and as each bingo indicium, being a bingo number, is drawn during the game, the indicia board indicates the bingo indicium drawn. The indicium board, or number board, therefore effectively maintains a list of all previously drawn bingo numbers.
Each bingo indicium may be carried on a representation of a ball. A set of balls carrying the bingo indicia may also include at least one ball carrying a special function operator. The special function may be at least one of a multiplier function and a wild function. The multiplier ball may have the effect of multiplying the prize that results if the selected bingo player gets bingo first. The wild ball may cause one of the number positions on each card to be randomly chosen and marked off.
As each bingo indicium is drawn throughout the game, a matching indicium on the game player""s bingo card may be marked to indicate a successful match and the awarding of a prize. If the same indicium appears on any of the other displayed, non-selected cards, those bingo cards may also be appropriately marked although no prize is awarded for the marking off of any indicia on the non-selected cards.
A prize may be awarded for each bingo indicium which is drawn and which corresponds to an indicium on the selected bingo card.